The home arena of the Edmonton Elks from the CFL became the first Canadian stadium converted into a winter sports competition venue ahead of December's Canada Snowboard's Style Experience FIS Big Air World Cup. The event was part of the FIS World Cup Tour and acted as a qualifying event for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games.

With the World Cup in Qatar well underway, the fact that winter is coming in some regions of the world could be forgotten. The Canadian national team fought valiantly in the group stage, but ultimately failed to earn any points. The 'Maple Leaves' bid farewell to the tournament, but there is still plenty of excitement ahead as the championship enters its decisive phase. Best FIFA World Cup online betting sites allow soccer fans to bet on the outcomes. 

Meanwhile, in Canada, business as usual as they are preparing for the arrival of the winter. Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, which on daily basis serves as a home ground to the Elks competing in the Canadian Football League (CFL) on the weekend of December 9-10 hosted a major winter sports event. The Style Experience FIS Snowboard big air World Cup Presented by Toyota happened at the 56,000-seater. The venue was provided with a huge snowboard jump structure on scaffolding ahead of the competition.

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The Style Experience was Canada's first ever Big Air World Cup contest held in a large stadium, and the event was the first of seven World Cup competitions to be held in Canada during the 2022-23 season. The event also acted as a qualification for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games. Apart from the sporting action itself, there was quite a party in Edmonton during the weekend.

The Style Experience FIS Snowboard big air also had a fan zone, live music, art, freestyle snowmobile demonstrations and other sporting contests. Music was provided by Red Bull certified DJs coming from mind-blowing sound system, complemented by lights and visuals designed to enhance the experience. It is worth mentioning that the Edmonton big jump was the biggest structure made of scaffolding of this kind ever assembled in the world. In Canada they now how to party like it’s 1999!

Amarjeet Sohi, Edmonton’s Mayor, said before the event: Edmonton is delighted to host this exciting new event at Commonwealth Stadium in December. Edmonton has a rich history of hosting world-class events, and this will be no exception. We look forward to showcasing Commonwealth Stadium – and our ability to think differently – by bringing snowboarding into an urban environment. Our city is a place of year-round action, and events such as this are important to showcase Edmonton as a vibrant place to live and play.

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The Big Air competition consists of one big jump, where riders must perform as many tricks as possible before landing, and each contestant has three runs to try to impress the judges. The highest two results from the three rides are combined to decide the winner. The men's competition was won by Australian teenager Valentino Guseli, for whom it was first World Cup Big Air gold medal. The women's event was won by local favourite Jasmine Baird. It was her 6th World Cup podium and first ever win in front of Canadian crowd.